Leaderboard

There once was a religious young woman who went to Confession. Upon entering the confessional, she said, 'Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned.' The priest said, 'Confess your sins and be forgiven.' The young woman said, 'Last night my boyfriend made mad passionate love to me seven times.' The priest thought long and hard and then said, 'Squeeze seven lemons into a glass and then drink the juice.' The young woman asked, 'Will this cleanse me of my sins?' The priest said, 'No, but it will wipe that smile off of your face.'

Claude The Hypnotist at the Senior Home It was entertainment night at the senior citizens' center. After the community sing along led by Alice at the piano, it was time for the star of the show - Claude the Hypnotist! Claude explained that he was going to put the whole audience into a trance. "Yes, each and every one of you and all at the same time." said Claude. The excited chatter dropped to silence as Claude carefully withdrew from his waistcoat pocket; a beautiful antique gold pocket watch and chain. "I want you to keep your eyes on this watch" said Claude, holding the watch high for all to see. "It is a very special and valuable watch that has been in my family for six generations" said Claude. He began to swing the watch gently back and forth while quietly chanting "Watch the watch --- Watch the watch ----Watch the watch" The audience became mesmerized as the watch swayed back and forth. The lights were twinkling as they were reflected from its gleaming surfaces. A hundred and fifty pairs of eyes followed the movements of the gently swaying the watch. They were hypnotized. And then, suddenly, the chain broke!!! The beautiful watch fell to the stage and burst apart on impact! "S&$T!" yelled Claude. It took them three days to clean the Senior Citizens' Center, and Claude was never invited there again.

I've been called a PITA before.

I'm a PETA member People Eating Tasty Animals

I have been catching them on a few different lures. It depends on the day and the situation. 8-5 was on a frog. 7-4,6-0, were on crankbaits.6-5 was on a jig.6-6 was on a rubber worm. Basically when I go out anywhere this time of year I have a worm, jig, crankbait and frog tied on. At times I think its not the bait but where you put it that is more important.

IMHO, those fantastic looking, super realistic, paint jobs, catch the crap out of....................fisherman. The dumb old bass around here will bite a crank bait with a bluegill pattern on the sides of it drawn by my 4 year old kid, just as much as they will those fancy ones. If they ain't biting cranks, they ain't biting them....a $20 lure isn't going to help you much there.

Would agree it is in the 4+ range.

Nice color. Beautiful.

Nice fish! 4ish sounds about right to me. (But the fish looks smaller on the send photo...)

Most "best colors for Senko" threads and articles seem to suggest one color for bright sunny, another for cloudy, and black for night. I guess it's my poor assumption that each color/situation was mutually exclusive. Makes sense that "best for" doesn't mean it's not "good for" or "equally best for" another situation. Thanks.

I've gotta say that I didn't know much about Phoenix boats but after seeing this thread I went on their site and I must say that I am in love. I am sure I will never be able to afford one though lol *crosses Ranger off of Powerball list and adds Phoenix*

As long as your tube has a nice spiral motion on the fall it's doesn't matter the color weight or sent ... It's all about the spiral!

Looks like a jetboat trail out of WV? I don't know where some of those places are. Slackwater has been tough fishing this year but I know where the LM are. Allen

Remember nothing good ever came from a story that starts with "I dumped a bunch of gas".

I'm pretty sure America's favorite plant is no longer tobacco.

Black is one of my main colors

Owner. Hard to go wrong with Gamy or Trokars, but I usually spend my money on Owner hooks.

I have had many emails about the MegaTube and how its designed. I cut it in half and rigged it to show that the butt end is solid for the first 1/2 inch. It works well with the pro model screw lock shakey head as well as a Texas rig set up. The body is hollow and the hook slides easily through it with very little resistance upon the hook set. I rig it Texposed in picture #2 to show you where the hook sits in the segmented part of the craws shell. I have had no/zero/nada/ issues with hook sets on this tube . If you have any other questions I am always here Thank you Me

The blade-like edge on Trokar's point, SHREDS plastic baits when texposing. Gammy's all the way.

I find it humorous that a PETA said something to be in regards to my leather motorcycle jacket. First off I didn't even know they existed in Alabama. Anyway. I told him he could have the jacket in exchange for letting me turn him into a coat. Boy did that set him off. He ranted about how wearing any once living thing was wrong. Even if I were to stumble upon a road kill cow it would still be wrong to make clothing out of its carcass. I politely asked him what his jacket was made of. Cotton responded the animal worshiper. I pointed out that by his argument cotton comes from a plant that was once living. At least until it was brutally ripped from the ground by whirring blades and flung without a care into a cold steal bin to slowly die. I told him I disagree with the indiscriminate killing of defenseless plants. "Plants don't have feelings" responded the animal lover and his associate who had since walked up. I asked how he knew that, had he asked a plant how if it had feelings? Now they are both stirred up and complaining at me. I'm having the time of my life with them at this point. I told them until I could wear a person and until cows stopped killing the poor defenseless plants I would continue wearing leather and any other animal product I wanted too. At this point they were screaming at me and calling me a murderer and a neanderthal. I decided to walk away at this point, but only to further antagonize them. I went to the nearest hamburger restaurant. And purchased a large plain hamburger. Then went back to the animal nuts, who were now forcing there beliefs on some unfortunate woman. I walked over and announced loudly. "This cow died for my Burger!" Back at me they focused their attention. I listened quietly and set the burger on the end of their table. I announced "now my friends this cow died for nothing. His death was purely in vain." I turned leaving my hamburger and began to walk away. I hadn't made it ten feet when the cow lover hurled the burger at me. Poor fellow I think I hurt his feelings or something. He looked on the verge of tears at this point. I let out a roar of a laugh at this poor schmuck and walked away. I ain't never seen them back down there since that night. Also as of now I am restarting my organization. PETP People for the Ethical Treatment of Plants. I am now excepting members. We eat animals in order to save the plants!

The always on anti-reverse on the smoke I have drives me insane. It's a decent reel but for the price shimano and daiwa reels are better in my opinion and I have all of them. The Daiwa Aird is a nice reel for the money but you can't beat the Stradic .

Nope. Way too many out there and with the fishing season coming to an end for the year there will be some good buys in the marketplace.

I love animals, right next to my mashed potatoes and gravy.

I fish both, but prefer Daiwa over both. I love the Zillion platform and plan to fish them for many years to come.

Just my opinion but size depends on a few factors. . How much gear do you plan on bringing etc. more room is usually better than less room however if you plan on going through the woods than smaller may be better. Also do a few searches for transport carts. Makes a huge difference when moving across land with a 75 pound boat. Also if you decide to buy a cart rather than build one don't skimp on that either buy a good quality one. Nothing worse than being a mile in the woods with the boat ablbd the cart craps out on you.

We have to be careful not to be guilty of the same tactics we condemn in others. Nice_bass I agree that using threats and emotion to protest PITA using threats and emotion is not going to help our cause.

You might want to stop while you're ahead

PETA when originally started was a good grass roots organization. While i may not have agreed with the majority of their stances i could see where they were coming from and respect their choices. Fast forward a few years and it has become a sensationalized media grabbing machine whose intent is really muddied. I have friends who were active participants and have since left because of the shift. As long as they don't harm me or my family i coul care less because as you stated, their influence really isn't there anymore.

Sometimes I wonder if the most ridiculous claims of PETA's actions weren't completely manufactured by their detractors. I don't care for them either, but there are wing nuts on both sides of the equation.

Even if it matches my shoes and belt?

That sucks! At least it was the back u-joint....

It would be shorter to list the ways I don't fish them. Here is the list :

Probably just in your head, though it is possible on that small of a boat that by shifting the trolling motor weight to the front of the boat, you might have created a bit more drag by making it a bit nose heavy in the front now. If you can get your hands on a handheld GPS unit you could find out for sure. Sounds like you switched it right. Just undo the small screw under the head where the handle is and rotate 180 degrees, then replace screw and retighten. Hand and motor should now both be facing the same way, and as you mentioned, forward will = forward, etc. Did that with a MK for 5 years myself until I finally upgraded to a standard bow mount motor. -T9

I quit a number of years ago. I stil miss it when I'm fishing or hunting but I figured I would miss my family more.

I fish a tournament almost every week. Some have 15 boats, some have many more. I don't have any sponsors, my boat is nearly 20 years old, and I do not wear a cute jersey. I do carry a man purse, though, lol.

You also need a fancy jersey

I'll BET they lost your message. ODDS are that if you show up at their meeting you will be welcome. PARLAY your position to find out if they want nonboaters. Just some suggestions you can GAMBLE on.

It's not that Quantum spinning reels are bad, it's just that Shimano reels for the same price are so very good. For this reason, I don't see much need to venture into other brands at the $150-$200 pricepoint. I do believe Academy has the Smoke spinning reel on clearance online.

ultmately if you are having fun then who cares how fast or slow you fish. Now if you are losing that then it is time to make it fun again and only you know how to do that for yourself.

I've never been to Walnut Point but I have, unfortunately, experienced fishing like you described. Summer and, especially, late summer can be hard! Hmmm...I'm trying to think of other lakes I've fished in the local area. Weldon Springs-early spring trip-couldn't catch a cold, A pond in Sibley (not to be confused with Sidney)-Not a very scenic pond but caught a few decent bass, Heritage lake on the old Chanute AFB grounds-pretty good in spring, not so good in summer. I've never been to Lake Vermillion (in or near Danville) so I won't provide comment. Some lakes that are worth a drive if you have the time and/or gas money: Sanchris, Mill Creek, Kankakee River-has walleye, smallmouth, etc. Evergreen Lake (near Bloomington) (has sauger, bass, muskie, white bass, crappie)-but also requires a boat fee if you are out-of-district (which champaign is). There is another lake I'd share but I'd want to know what kind of fisherman you are first. Newton Lake is famous for big bass. Personally, somewhat ashamedly, in the three times I've been there, i didn't do that great. Dawson Lake has walleye which is a bit of an exotic species for around here. (Well, Clinton has walleye too but you know how I feel about that lake-(bwell has heard me rage about that lake on many occassions). Dawson is not great for bass though, apparently, there are a few small tourney's on it each year. Given it's size, I am surprised it is fished as hard as it is. Perhaps it's because, while it has a no-wake restriction, boats are not limited to certain horsewpower motors and anyone can put on there.

I live about 10minutes from Dawson, and only fish it early spring maybe once or twice. Gets very crowded and quite frankly the quality is not good for bass either. I usually fish for walleye or crappie when I go there out of boredom. 8-10 years ago, that was actually a pretty good bass lake.

I only fish about half the lake- the cold end and never going further north east then party/houseboat cove. Typically I just do several runs of about 15-20 areas and can figure it out from there. There are days when it fishes small, but I don't know that there are any other lakes finishing with bigger bags in IL this year.

David, the fisherman, had driven by the lake many times and had seen some other anglers about, so he decided to give his luck a try. On his first day of fishing he had no luck at all but noticed that another fisherman near him that was scooping in one after another. He had to know The Secret. "Excuse me sir, but would you mind telling me what sort of bait you are using?" he asked. The other man looked around a bit embarrassed. "Well, I am a surgeon, and quite by accident I found that human tonsil works very well." David thanked the man, thought about what sort of bait to try next time, and left. The next day, David returned to the lake, tried a different bait and still had no luck. Just as the day before, there was yet a different man reeling in fish after fish. "Excuse me," asked David, "but could you suggest a bait that I could try?" "Well, I can, but I am not sure it will do you any good. I am using a bit of human appendix." "Hmm," thought David. It seemed that the fish in this lake would require a little more effort than normal. He left, willing to give the lake one more try. On the third day, David still had no luck. As was usual, there was yet another man near him bringing in fish left and right. David wanted to confirm what he already knew. "Excuse me sir, but are you a doctor?" "No, I am a Rabbi." replied the man.

A-Jay

A man passed out on the beach in Miami for four hours, and got a horrible sunburn, specifically to the front of his legs above his knees. He went to the hospital, and was promptly admitted after being diagnosed with second-degree burns. With his skin already starting to blister, and the severe pain he was in, the doctor prescribed continuous intravenous feeding with saline, electrolytes, a sedative, and a little Blue pill every four hours. The nurse, who was rather astounded, asked, 'What good will the Little Blue pill do for him, Doctor? The doctor replied, 'It won't do anything for his condition, but it'll keep the sheet off his legs. A-Jay

A cop is parked across the street from a bar at closing time looking to pull over some drunk drivers. He sees a man, who's obviously plastered, walk out into the parking lot. The man is stumbling all over the place for a good 10 or 15 minutes. After trying his key in several different cars, he finally finds his own, gets in, and fumbles with the ignition. While this is happening, the other bar patrons also head to their cars and drive away but the cop thinks 'this guy is really messed up...if I let him drive he may kill someone'. So he waits. The parking lot empties and finally the gentleman pulls out of the parking lot. As soon as he gets on the road the officer pulls him over. He asks him to step out of the vehicle and proceeds to administer the standard DUI tests. Stand on one leg, say your ABC's backwards, walk a strait line, and all that. Surprisingly the man aces each test without a problem. Completely stunned, the cop asks the man to take a breathalyzer test. The man complies, blows into the device and much to the officers amazement, the meter reads 0.0. The cop says 'what's going on here? I could have sworn you were 10 sheets to the wind!'. The man gives the officer a wry smile and replies 'I'm the designated decoy'.

I bet you do, you just can't remember where you put them

I've caught countless frogs on hollybelly frogs on mats. Last year I caught a giant snapping turtle on 7# fluoro casting a drop shot near some weed lines. I just felt a tick, leaned back and just felt dead weight. I thought I had a log until this massive shell surfaced and started thrashing. He had the whole dang thing in his mouth. No idea how the line didn't break. I promptly cut the line as I didn't see me winning that one.

I posted this thread for a reason; you should always make an effort to control the length of your cast whenever possible. Sometimes we have the need to make very long casts to cover more water like fishing a crank bait to get the lure down where the bass are holding. Most of the time we can make shorter cast and should due to missed hook sets. Bank fisherman sometimes need to make longer cast to get out to where the bass are located and believe that is what is needed. This is a big handicap for the bank anglers, due to hook setting issues. Where I fish for bass most of the time during daylight hours, the big bass have learned to avoid boats and lures fished with line they detect easily. At night this is less of an issue. If I make shorter controlled cast with line heavy enough to force a big bass to the boat, you will never get a strike in the gin clear, heavy pressured lakes of SoCal. Using 12-14 lb FC line is considered heavy line by most experienced west coast bass anglers, unless you are casting big swimbaits. To catch big bass during the daytime in SoCal or other gin clear, high pressured lakes, you are faced with being very quite approaching areas where these big bass tend to be located and make a long cast. Using 6-8 lb FC line will get more strikes, however getting a good hook set at 90' to 100' with a jig is extremely difficult and trying to control a big bass after it's hooked is nearly impossible with line lighter than 10 lb. Some days it takes 10 lb FC line to get strikes, however I usually start out fishing 14 lb with jigs and big worms, 20 lb for swimbaits, simply can't cast a heavy swimbait with anything lighter, 25 lb is better if you can get strikes. So with a long cast rod sets are out, you need to learn to reel set and use the rod to complete the hook set. Tom

Thanks for the info, braid really helps too